PROMO: The Altered Beast

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PROMO: The Altered Beast

 

"And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him."

-James 5:15

 

~=~=~=~=~

 

"Was this your mother's?"

 

In a small apartment in the south of Sydney, across the harbour, two figures sit. The room is small and dank, decorated sparsely and plainly, for the man who lives here need not express himself through material posessions. Only a few veins of light penetrate the closed blinds and drawn curtains; summer is here, and the sweltering heat must be kept out... and, perhaps, this brooding atmosphere kept in.

 

The large man who sits on the sofa, nearly taking up its entire seating space, barely looks up to acknowledge his guest. The man in question is examining a small, white china teacup with gold flecks. At last, his deep, familiarly accented voice rumbles in response. "Yes."

 

"It's quite lovely."

 

Terrence "Janus" Bailey returns to sitting in uncomfortable silence; the man across from him stops looking at his tea cup long enough to take a sip from it. He seems totally unfazed by the awkwardness of this meeting, or even his own audacity in asking for it.

 

"Listen," Terrence finally says, not even moving his head.

 

"Yes?"

 

"Did you have something to discuss with me here, or did you only come to my home to stare at my china?"

 

The man across from Terrence sighs, setting his cup and saucer onto a nearby endtable. "I'm sorry. I was only trying to be polite."

 

"Polite would not have been showing up at my doorstep uninvited. Even for... 'business,' I don't usually let people come to my flat to talk to me. In fact, I don't let anyone come to my flat."

 

"I apologize, again, to both of you," the other man says softly, his constant apologies almost a source of amusement to Bailey, as well on his insistence of addressing 'both' of them. "I just feel that talks such as these are best held in places familiar. Not in parks or vehicles, empty warehouses or, of course, back alleys."

 

"Well, 'Inquisitor,' get on with it," Terrence says, finally looking up. The small man sitting across from him certainly wasn't what he expected from an agent of the Supaida-Kumo Clan. His voice was crisp and clean of any accent, a soft tenor compared to his bursqe baritone. His dress was peculiar, almost something out of the 1800s with his long, flip-collared overcoat and white dress shirt with the ruffled neck ties. In his gloved hands rested a very familiar looking wooden cane, and although his face was once again hidden with the lack of light in the room, certain unmistakable Asian features couldn't be missed. Most interstingly, however, was that one side of his face seemed to be completely white... and that he had not ceased smiling since he had been let in.

 

"If you can excuse me, but I was so certain," the Inquisitor continues, "that my letter would pique your concern, that I couldn't wait for your response."

 

"It certainly was... interesting," Janus admits, fixing eye contact with the agent from the Clan.

 

"We live in interesting times, my friends," says the Inquisitor. "The world is changing, and things have been moved out of balance. For centuries, the Clan kept that balance... when we faced internal strife, it was lost - and for so long now, we have been seeking, in vain, to restore it."

 

"I don't understand," Terrence mutters.

 

"Do you know the history of the Clan?"

 

"No, outside of what I have been told."

 

"Then, sadly, I doubt you have been told very much," the Inquisitor replies, before leaning in a little closer. "It is fabled, almost like a children's story. Not the type of thing that Kibagami or Yuuichiro would tell you, or even be interested in. According to legend, at the end of the Ashikaga shogunate, five of the most powerful daimyo in Japan united in a secret alliance. Tired of the endless wars and famine that wrought their people, they banded together to destroy the feudalism that crippled their nation. They knew that the Shogun could not be toppled through strength, but through ideas. And so they left to seek foreign education.

 

"Through some manner of trechary, the Shogun got word of this alliance. He moved quickly to seize their land and armies, then kill their families and retainers. When they returned, they had nothing, and swore vengeance. They amassed a small group of followers and, for decades, fought a secret war. When Japan chose to isolate itself, they sent their sons away, with the vow that they would one day return to free their country," at this, the Inquisitor laughs, and then continues. "Of course, their sons were weak, and the underworld is a dark place. As they amassed foreign, cladestine power, they became more corrupt, and fought amongst themselves for supremity. At last, the most ruthless of them killed the other four sons, and took the name 'Nekura,' meaning 'dark-natured,' to represent his victory and his new station. With it, the noble dreams of the fathers died, and the Supaida-Kumo Clan as you see it now was born," the Inquisitor finishes, with his everpresent smile.

 

Terrence takes a moment to absorb the story he has heard, and then laughs himself. "That really is a fairy tale. But," his face returns to a firm expression, "You still haven't answered my question. I want you to get to the point."

 

The Inquisitor's smile breaks out into a full-fledged grin. "But don't you see, my friends? That story is the point. After the disappearance of Master Nekura - Spider Nekura - we were lost. The Clan became mired in incessant infighting, and almost tore itself apart. It was only by the will of my Lords that all was not lost."

 

"What do I... do we.... have to do with this?" the big Australian inquires softly.

 

"I will be frank. I am on a mission of 'war reparation,' I suppose you could say. Men like Yuuichiro Kaesame and Nathaniel Kibagami pose a threat to our new order. They are... dissenters. Deserters. Their knowledge is dangerous, and they need to be eliminated. They are failures. I know the idea of destroying Kibagami, the one who made you this way, appeals to you. Both of you."

 

The Inquisitor, with his never-faltering smile, regards the figure reclining on the couch opposite him as almost begrudgingly the duo nod 'their' head in agreement.

 

"Good. So what do you think, then?"

 

"I think... I think..."

 

There was a momentary lull in the conversation where Terrence lowered his head, and pressed fingers to a spot just above his temple, wrinkling his brow. When he lifted his head again his eyes were sharp and clear, and his voice had taken on a difference in reflection. No longer awkward and curious, it was leaning towards dangerously ominous. It meant only one thing and one thing only - that the Hell Machine had finally taken control.

 

"I think you are no different than any other person who has come to us. You say these things, but you want our strength, because you are weak," Janus spits the word, reviling everything about its meaning. "You are no different from any others in our life; you only want to use us for your own selfish ends. We have no desire to be used."

 

The Inquisitor does not seem too taken aback by the sharp outburst from the big Australian, though for a few moments his fixed smile falters momentarily as he ducks his head in an apologetic motion that could only make Janus snort and brush the hair from his eyes. The apologies no longer amused him - in one way, it could be said that he was looking straight through them at the Inquisitor himself.

 

"You must take me for a fool, Inquisitor. You come here, and you give your sugarcoated offering, but I know what the Clan is about. My contract was signed in blood..." here the giant taps fingers against the scars on his chest. "...and you are here to see that it is enforced. Besides... if Thoth and Silent are considered 'failures', then what does that make me?"

 

And then the fixed smile does drop from his companion's face. Reflected in those eyes and thinner, sterner smile was an internal strength the Hell Machine recognised. Neither says a word for several moments, and it was the Inquisitor who speaks first. His voice remained friendly, though there was a stern undercurrent to it now - no apologies, no sugarcoated words - this was business now.

 

"Hmph. I see there's no fooling you. Janus... Terrence... I need you two to understand something," and these words leave his mouth, the smile, at least, disappears. "If I had come here wanting to force you into your 'contract', I would have done so. The Clan has no need for false pretenses, you should know that well. The Shadow Council considers all of you to be failures - in fact, when I told my Lords of my plan, they were appaled. They felt that if anybody, I should kill you first."

 

"Touching," the big Australian snorts softly, as the Inquisitor continues explaining the situation.

 

"But that is not the way, my friends," the Asian man adds slyly. "Kibagami and Yuuichiro are very powerful - and if I am to face them, I need the strength of the whole Clan, the Master's Clan. I came here to offer you a deal, not to give you an order. You see, I already have power, more than you may ever know. And I can't imagine why you would to remain here, with this..."

 

The Asian figure lifts one gloved hand, motioning around the sparse and small flat. His voice is not quite derisive - the Inquisitor was not so daft - but subtlely calculated to evoke a reaction. Unfortunately, Janus' easy rage was now and had been for some time tempered by Terrence's sanity, and the Hell Machine did not rise to the bait, which the Inquisitor approved of.

 

"...wasting away. I saw what you did to Bruce Blank last month, and I can see there is still much desire burning in you."

 

"Desire for, Inquisitor? You know what my forte is."

 

"Not destruction," the Clan agent says with that smile creeping onto his face again. "A desire to succeed."

 

Ellipses from the tall Australian were his only response, and he continued, gesturing absently with one hand as he continued explaining.

 

"I do not know what, but you, my friends, still have a grand part to play in all of this. I want to share my power with you. I want to help you achieve what you want to achieve."

 

"How very altruistic," the Hell Machine says, smirking. His eyes are not red - that does require contacts - but their sharp clarity shows his amusement. "How would you help me? And why, hmm?"

 

"Those who used you in the past for you strength, lacked... vision. I must say that I am somehwat selfish, and I do want you for something," his face breaks into a toothy grin. "Your mind."

 

If he had been anyone else, the Hell Machine would have laughed, and it showed in the gleam in his eyes. Part of him almost wanted to correct the Inquisitor that there wasn't just 'a mind' to be used in his head. It must have shown in the slight relaxing of his posture, as during his speech the Asian's smile came back to its full peak.

 

"You are cunning and wise, intelligent and driven. You often acted as the mouthpiece for the Unholy Trinity," the Inquisitor reminds. "Can you tell me that you weren't the brains behind the success of yourself and Mr. Cirillo, or that you didn't engineer your triumph over him? Kibagami and Yuuichiro wanted to chain you because they feared your power, but they also feared your mind. They knew they had not broken it; they sharpened it."

 

"And I ask you again, why do you do this? You cannot expect US, of all people, to believe that virtue is its own reward."

 

Taking a deep breath, the Inquisitor rises from his chair and walks across the cramped living room to where Janus is sitting. Almost playfully, he kneels so as to look directly into the eyes of the Hell Machine, a ray of light illuminating the curves of his lips. "Did you know that among the five daimyo there was no leader; only equals who shared a single vision?" he asks. "That is what I will gain. A partner. An equal."

 

A partner. An equal. Steepling his fingers, Janus leaned back on the couch and closed his eye, shutting out the dimness of the apartment and the Inquisitor. If he were of Japanese descent he would have called it a meditation technique, but it wasn't. Here, Terrence and Janus addressed each other, and the pros - power - and cons - potential subservience - of the entire situation. Since their first hellacious encounters the duo had learned to co-exist after a fashion, and together felt themselves capable of anything. Trust nobody but yourselves, they believed. This however wasn't something Terrence could deal with, and when the big Australian opened his eyes again, the sharpness of Janus remained visible in their depths as the Inquisitor spoke.

 

"With your mind and your body, I will grant you some of my power - true power. And we could do anything."

 

"I already have the power to destroy," Janus rumbled.

 

"No, my friends. This is a different power. The power to choose."

 

Silence as they stared at each other across the table, and then Janus finally lifted his teacup and sipped his tea in a strangely elegant motion for such a titanic figure, before putting the cup back down on the table. His voice was a low and rather amused sounding rumble.

 

"...you are the architect of a most unholy union, Inquisitor."

 

Laughter echoes around the apartment, coming mostly from the Inquisitor himself. Janus was content to remain silent, judging and analysing the slim figure before him. He was no genius, was the Hell Machine, but his wits were indeed sharp. He would agree with this situation, but watch carefully. He did not intend to fall into subservience again as he had to Kibagami and Thoth. As for the Inquisitor, who could say, but he had gotten his wish, and he regarded the giant with that beaming smile.

 

"Now, in the time we spend as partners, I must ask one thing of you - only one thing that I must demand out of hand."

 

Janus raised his eyebrows, his tone of voice implying that one shouldn't demand Anything of the Hell Machine. "And what is that, Inquisitor?"

 

"...call me Hiroshi."

 

~Fin~

[JHawk 0]

Ooo, this is getting good...

[Toxxic 0]

Janus is on board, and Terrence is coming with him.

 

 

...fuck.

[The Ill One 0]

Man it's crazy to think how far the Clan has developed- when it first came about in the ML and G addressed the fact that it was a bunch of white guys dressed in hooded robes.

 

Anyway it's even better to begin to learn the history and to piece together everything revolving 'round the Clan. So I second Hawke, this is getting good.

[Vasarian_Brandy 0]

This... This could be very... VERY... Bad...

 

I like the whole idea as a storyline, but...

 

Hoo'boy...

[Toxxic 0]

Hey Fury - weren't you the guy who carved those holes in Terrence's chest under Kibagami's direction, and therefore unleashed Janus?

 

Yes, I think this could be very VERY bad

[Vasarian_Brandy 0]

Hey Fury - weren't you the guy who carved those holes in Terrence's chest under Kibagami's direction, and therefore unleashed Janus?

 

(Ahem) I can neither confirm nor deny these preposterous allegations.

 

(Looks around warily)

 

Seriously though, I think it was while I was one of my hiatuses... Hiatii... Whatever.

[Toxxic 0]

You were in Haiti?

[Vasarian_Brandy 0]

You were in Haiti?

 

Sure.

 

[TheBostonStrangler 0]

Oh goodie, the Clan is back. Maybe I can become the first three-time member.

[Vasarian_Brandy 0]

Oh goodie, the Clan is back. Maybe I can become the first three-time member.

 

... Zuh?